China declassifies latest stealth fighter jet

China has declassified its latest stealth fighter jet, making it only the second country after the US to possess two types of such aircraft.

The J-35A is set to be shown to the public at the Airshow China 2024 in the southern city of Zhuhai, from 12 November to 17 November.

The aircraft adds to the airpower of the world’s fastest growing military, and is part of an effort by Beijing to match America’s military capabilities as it modernises its armed forces.

Its commissioning has not been confirmed yet. But once inducted into the People’s Liberation Army, it will be China’s second stealth fighter jet in service. The other is the fifth-generation J-20 stealth combat aircraft, which was commissioned in 2016.

The US has the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightning II in this category of stealth fighter aircraft.

Stealth military jets have features that make them difficult for radar and other detection systems to spot. They employ advanced technologies and design strategies to reduce radar, infrared, visual, and acoustic signatures, effectively making them “invisible” or “stealthy” to enemy defence systems.

The Chinese defence ministry released a picture of the new jet at a press conference on Tuesday. It shows “75” on the jet’s tail, a reference to the 75^th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China which was marked this year.

The J-35A is reportedly “designed mainly for air combat operations and can also conduct air-to-surface attack”.

Noting the difference between the J-20 and the J-35A, Chinese military analyst Wang Mingzhi said the former is categorised as a heavy duty stealth fighter jet whereas the latter is a medium-sized multirole stealth fighter jet.

“The primary distinction is that the J-20 focuses on air superiority missions while the J-35A is versatile, capable of pursuing air superiority and accomplishing a variety of ground and maritime strike missions,” he said.

“In future operations, these two aircraft can precisely target both land and sea objectives in a coordinated manner, thus playing a crucial role for achieving air superiority.”

Wang Yongqing, chief expert at the Shenyang Aircraft Design and Research Institute, the company which developed the aircraft, said the J-35 series will have multiple variants for both air and naval forces.

The new aircraft “features highly mature technology and system, which in turn improve its reliability”, he said, adding the “A” in the J-35A denotes “its capability status, indicating a phase in its development, which is still underway and in order”.

The J-35A is one of several pieces of Chinese military hardware set to feature at the airshow. The H-19 surface-to-air missile system and new “reconnaissance and strike” UAVs will also make their debut at this year’s show, Niu Wenbo of the air force’s equipment department confirmed on Tuesday.

Russia’s Su-57 stealth fighter will also make an appearance for the first time.

Australian ambassador to US deleted messages about Trump, report says

Kevin Rudd, the Australian ambassador to the United States, deleted tweets criticizing Donald Trump in the campaign’s final week.

Rudd, the former Australian prime minister, scrubbed his X page of past anti-Trump remarks days before the Republican clinched the 2024 election on Wednesday morning, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

He took down posts that referred to Trump as “the most destructive president in history” and as a “traitor to the West,” the outlet reported.

In a now-deleted post from June 2020, memorialized in a screenshot by Sky News Australia, Rudd responded to an article about how the Bishop of the Washington Diocese was “outraged over Trump’s photo-op” with a bible. The controversial stunt, at the height of the Black Lives Matter protests, saw Trump pose with a Bible outside a DC church, sparking widespread anger.

Rudd tweeted: “The most destructive president in history. He drags America and democracy through the mud. He thrives on fomenting, not healing, division. He abuses Christianity, church and bible to justify violence. All aided and abetted by Murdoch’s FoxNews network in America which feeds this.”

By Wednesday, Rudd was posting to a different tune entirely.

He congratulated Trump on his election victory in a statement posted on X: “Australians and Americans are long-standing friends, partners and allies. Our nations and peoples are bound by a history of shared values, shared sacrifice and shared opportunity. These deep bonds of true and enduring friendship between us will also shape our common future.”

The statement continued: “Australia looks forward to working closely with President Trump and his Administration on the challenges and opportunities that our two great democracies and the wider world will face in the years ahead.”

When asked by The Sydney Morning Herald about the deleted social media posts, Rudd’s office said in a statement that he had been “a regular commentator on American politics” while working at a US-based think tank and that comments had been removed “out of respect for the office of President of the United States, and following the election of President Trump.”

“This has been done to eliminate the possibility of such comments being misconstrued as reflecting his positions as ambassador and, by extension, the views of the Australian government,” the statement continued. “Ambassador Rudd looks forward to working with President Trump and his team to continue strengthening the US-Australia alliance.”

In an interview with UK Member of Parliament Nigel Farage in March, Trump responded to some of Rudd’s comments.

“He won’t be there long if that’s the case. I don’t know much about him. I heard he was a little bit nasty,” the former president said. “I hear he’s not the brightest bulb, but I don’t know much about him. If he’s at all hostile he will not be there long.”

Australia proposes landmark ban for children under 16 on social media

Australia is introducing laws to ban children under the age of 16 from accessing social media.

The prime minister said on Thursday that the proposed laws, which will be tabled in parliament next week, are meant to reduce the harm that social media causes Australia’s children.

“Social media is doing harm to our kids and I’m calling time on it,” Anthony Albanese said at a press conference on Thursday, adding that he has spoken to “thousands” of parents and other adults on the subject.

“This one is for the mums and dads,” he added. “They, like me, are worried sick about the safety of our kids online. I want Australian families to know that the government has your back. I want parents to be able to say, ‘Sorry, mate, that’s against the law.’”

He said there will be no exemptions to the age limit even if children already have accounts or have permission from their parents to access social media.

Mr Albanese also said that it will be up to social media companies to enforce the age limit. The platforms will have to “demonstrate they are taking reasonable steps to prevent access” for young people.

“The onus won’t be on parents or young people,” he said.

The law is expected to come into force 12 months after it is passed and will be subject to a review once in place. A national cabinet meeting of all premiers and chief ministers has been called on Friday to discuss the proposed legislation.

“This is world-leading legislation and we want to make sure we’ve got it right,” Mr Albanese said.

“We think there will be some, of course, exclusions and exemptions as well for this, to make sure that there aren’t unintended consequences – but we think this is absolutely the right thing.”

Communications minister Michelle Rowland said penalties will be imposed on social media platforms if they are found to be flouting the laws.

“The eSafety commissioner will have responsibility for enforcement and there needs to be enhanced penalties to ensure compliance,” she said.

Ms Rowland said platforms that will be impacted by the legislation include Meta‘s Instagram and Facebook, Bytedance’s TikTok, and Elon Musk’s X. Alphabet’s YouTube will also likely fall within the scope of the legislation.

Social media platforms already have an age limit of 13 in place, but it is not easy to enforce.

Australia’s eSafety commissioner has recommended a “double-blind tokenised approach” to ensure enforcement: information will be provided to a third party that will verify the user’s age to social media platforms without revealing other details, reported The Sydney Morning Herald.

Details of the plan are still being worked on via a trial of potential age-verification technologies.

Opposition communications spokesman David Coleman said social media use by children is “one of the defining issues of our era”.

“We want to make sure that the legislation is strong and that there aren’t loopholes,” he said.

“We don’t think that TikTok can be made safe for children, we do not think that Snapchat can ever be made safe for children, and we don’t think that Instagram can be safe for children.

“These platforms are inherently unsafe for younger children, and the idea that they can be made safe is absurd. The government shouldn’t be negotiating with the platforms.”

Meta has said it will comply with the legislation but expressed concern about the age verification technology.

“The idea that somehow you can sort of force the industry to be in a technological place that it isn’t, is probably a bit misunderstood in terms of where the industry is,” Meta’s global head of safety, Antigone Davis, said on Thursday, according to The Guardian.

“The current state of age assurance technology… requires a level of personally identified information to be shared,” she said. “It’s usually in the form of an ID or document ID, documentation or biometric type data, facial feature data for young people, and if it’s parental consent, the data that will be involved there to verify the parent is just another additional layer of data to establish.”

The UK is trialling a similar scheme but it remains in its infancy and only applies to adult sites, not social media. It calls on companies to verify the ages of users using bank account, phone provider or credit card checks, or facial ID technology.

In October, Norway announced plans to increase the age limit for social media use to 15 in an effort to protect children from the “power of algorithms”.

The move comes as several European countries are introducing bans on smartphones in schools in an effort to reduce screen addiction and tackle cyberbullying.

In September, 200 schools in France began testing a “digital break” that prevents students from using phones during school hours. If successful, the trial will be rolled out to all schools in January.

Raygun retires from breakdancing after Paris Olympics backlash

Australian breakdancer Rachael Gunn is retiring from competitive breaking following the harsh reaction to her performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Gunn, also known as “B-girl Raygun”, shot to internet notoriety almost overnight in August after she performed unusual moves at the Games, including a kangaroo hop and a wriggle on the floor.

“I just didn’t have any control over how people saw me or who I was. I was going to keep competing, for sure, but that seems really difficult for me to do now,” Gunn, 37, a university lecturer with a PhD in dance, told local radio station 2DayFM on Wednesday.

“I think the level of scrutiny that’s going to be there, and people will be filming it, and it will go online.”

The Paris Olympics was criticised for including breaking as a port. The Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 has ditched it, but Gunn said she won’t be participating in local competition either.

“I still break but that’s like, in my living room with my partner,” she said.

The Australian left the Paris competition without scoring a single point. She was knocked out at the round robin stage after losing all three of her bouts. Her performance, especially a step where she seemed to wriggle on the ground, bemused Olympic fans and officials alike and she became the subject of condescending social media chatter.

Gunn’s performance sparked a petition calling for an apology from the athlete as well as Australia’s Olympic chef de mission Anna Meares. The petition, which received over 50,000 signatures, derided Gunn and Meares for “attempting to gaslight the public and undermining the efforts of genuine athletes”.

She described the response to her performance “devastating”.

“I’d really like to ask the press to please stop harassing my family, my friends, the Australian breaking community and the broader street dance community,” she said in an Instagram video at the time.

“Everyone has been through a lot as a result of this, so I ask you to please respect their privacy.”

Gunn also apologised to the breaking community but insisted that her “record speaks” to her being Australia’s best B-girl.

Actors face social media storm for giving daughter ‘Muslim’ name

Bollywood actors Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh have been subjected to hostile criticism on social media over their choice of name for their baby daughter.

Padukone gave birth to a daughter in September and the couple shared a picture of her online on the festival of Diwali, considered an auspicious day by the Hindus.

The post on Instagram featured just the baby’s feet. The caption read: “Dua Padukone Singh. ‘Dua’: meaning a Prayer. Because She is the Answer to our Prayers. Our hearts are filled with Love & Gratitude.”

The word “dua” comes from Arabic and means “prayer” or “supplication”. In Islam, dua refers to a prayer of invocation to seek help from God and is treated as a form of worship.

Shortly after the post went online, the couple were inundated with criticism of the name, with many questioning the use of a word associated with Islam as opposed to one associated with Hinduism.

“Why not prarthana and why duaa??? Why not hindi but urdu??” commented one user. Another said: “Just for your information (Prathna Means “Prayer”) I hope you might know these words also, as you are a Sanatani. By name, but as personal you are ????”

Sanatani is a follower of Sanātana Dharma, an alternative term used by some Hindus to refer to the Hindu religion.

The word “prathna” or “prarthana” comes from the Sanskrit language and also means “prayer” or “request.” In the Hindu religion, prarthana is part of the overall process of worship.

Padukone and Singh are Hindu. Singh said in a past interview that his paternal grandfather was Sikh. The couple had a traditional Hindu ceremony as well as a Sikh ceremony called Anand Karaj when they got married as a nod to their roots.

Several commentators, though, questioned the “absurd” reaction to the naming of their child. “Why are you pressed over a child’s name that isn’t yours???” one asked.

Earlier this year, data from US-based research group India Hate Lab showed that India experienced an average of two instances of anti-Muslim hate speech every day in 2023. The report also showed that there had been a “rapid growth of new Hindu nationalist groups and actors engaging in hate speech” in the country.

In 2023, India Hate Lab documented 668 hate speech events targeting Muslims. It recorded 255 of these events in the first half of 2023 and 413 in the second half, marking a 62 per cent increase.

The group said it used the UN definition of hate speech – prejudiced or discriminatory language towards an individual or group based on attributes including religion, ethnicity, nationality, race or gender.

Out of the 668 hate speech events, 498, or 75 per cent, took place in states and federal territories ruled by prime minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, the group said.

Reports by Amnesty International showed that Indian authorities targeted the homes, businesses and places of worship of Muslims using bulldozers, adding that this came at a time when the Modi administration stood accused of trampling over the human rights of minorities and weaponising religious discrimination.

‘Tar’ balls on Sydney beaches found to be something much more grim

Black blobs that washed ashore in Sydney last month are likely fat aggregates containing human faeces, forever chemicals, and methamphetamine, a new analysis revealed.

Hundreds of mysterious “tar balls” about the size of golf balls washed up on Sydney’s beaches in mid-October, prompting their closure for days for cleanup operations.

The black spheres were collected in plastic bags by workers wearing hazmat suits and sent for testing.

Initial analysis suggested they were likely tar balls from an oil spill containing unrefined oil and debris that was “not extremely toxic” to humans.

A new lab assessment presents a more complicated, and disgusting, picture.

Scientists at the University of New South Wales say the blobs are mostly carbon but not majorly of fossil fuel origin. They used a common lab technique called spectroscopy to find that the balls contain “human waste”, mainly fats, oils as well as greasy molecules usually found in soap scum, cooking oil and food sources.

A more specific test called mass spectrometry revealed organic molecules like fatty acids and glycerides as well as “vehicle-grade fuels”, the researchers explain in The Conversation.

They also found traces of toxic industrial chemicals like perfluoroalkyl substances – also known as “forever chemicals” because they persist in the environment for years without breaking down – pesticides, steroidal compounds like norgestrel, veterinary drugs, and medications to treat hypertension like losartan.

In addition, the scientists found traces of human faecal waste containing cholesterol molecules and recreational drugs such as methamphetamine and tetrahydrocannabinol from cannabis.

Given this composition of the blobs, the researchers suspect they likely came from domestic sewage and industrial runoff. The latest analysis, however, could not “definitively confirm their exact origin” of the balls.

“This uncertainty reflects the broader challenges faced by scientists and environmental agencies in tracking and addressing pollution in coastal areas,” researchers said.

The incident highlights the need to address the build-up of fat, oil and grease, or FOG, in sewers, the scientists say. “Disposal of used cooking oil in households and FSE sinks results in the formation of highly adhesive and viscous FOG deposits,” scientists at the RMIT University in Melbourne noted in a study last year.

What does North Korea stand to gain from sending troops to Russia?

It is clear what Vladimir Putin gains from thousands of North Korean troops joining Russia’s prolonged war in Ukraine. But the motivation behind Kim Jong-un sending young and inexperienced soldiers into a battle that will enter its third winter this year is less apparent.

North Korean soldiers training to fight in Europe’s biggest conflict since the Second World War have stakeholders watching to see if the so-called “blood alliance” with Russia could become one of the most lucrative projects the reclusive country has ever pursued.

Thousands of North Korean soldiers are already training in Russia for combat with the Ukrainian army alongside the Russian president’s troops as the two most heavily sanctioned and isolated regimes step up their friendship to an unprecedented level.

South Korea, the US, and the UK have confirmed the presence of North Korean soldiers on Russian soil with most massing near the Kursk border of Ukraine where Mr Putin’s forces have faced some of the toughest battleground challenges from Kyiv.

The South Korean intelligence agency, which first raised the alarm over the troop deployment, has said at least 12,000 soldiers including generals and senior officials are in Russia now, and American intelligence said they could be fighting “within days”.

It would mark the first time that North Korea, which has one of the world’s largest militaries with 1.2 million soldiers, has put boots on the ground in an international conflict.

North Korea has not fought a war since 1953 when the Korean War ended in an armistice but has been preparing for a renewed conflict with South Korea.

It is an unprecedented move for an isolated country like North Korea to mobilise soldiers in a distant war after decades of closely guarding the country against foreign news and even restricting movement from one province to another. Its soldiers would be on unfamiliar territory, handling new weaponry and comrades speaking a foreign language.

What’s on the table for the leader of the impoverished nation? Food, cash, and nuclear and space cooperation, experts say.

But these are immediate and predictable benefits. The more important question is what Mr Kim is aiming to obtain from this relationship over the longer term – a dangerous escalation that could have more far-reaching consequences for northeast Asia, analysts say.

The South Korean spy agency said last month Russia could pay at least $2,000 per month to each North Korean soldier, shelling out a total of $20m (£15.5m) per month for 10,000 soldiers.

A huge percentage of their earnings – up to 95 per cent – will likely go directly to Mr Kim’s coffers, and the remainder to the soldiers, according to Lee Woong Gil, a former member of one of North Korea’s top Storm Corps units.

This means a soldier would end up earning $1,200 to $2,400 – a lucrative enough offer for many young men willing to volunteer for the risky Russian tour, former soldiers said.

North Korea has also faced acute food shortages in recent decades since a crippling famine killed an estimated hundreds of thousands in the mid-1990s. They have often been exacerbated by natural disasters, including monsoon floods. A significant number of defectors said they never received government food rations in North Korea.

Wi Sung Lac, a member of the South Korean parliamentary intelligence committee, told The Korea Herald that North Korea’s grain production falls short of its needs, and that if Russia provides 600,000 to 700,000 tonnes of rice, it would cover over half of the annual shortfall.

Rachel Minyoung Lee, a senior fellow for the Stimson Center’s Korea Program and 38 North, told The Independent that North Korea’s dispatch of troops is a different level of commitment than exporting weapons, which means “Kim’s leverage over Putin has gone up”.

“This means Russia’s transfer of sensitive military technology to North Korea has become more likely than before. This would be in addition to the cash that we think North Korea is earning by sending soldiers to Russia, on top of the food and oil supplies it reportedly has been receiving from Russia already,” she said.

But money is likely among the lowest of the priorities on Mr Kim’s mind. Experts suggest the North Korean leader is more interested in gaining cutting-edge technology for its space and nuclear programmes and more firepower to threaten South Korea, its number one enemy.

“North Korea is very likely to ask for technology transfers in diverse areas, including the technologies relating to tactical nuclear weapons, technologies related to their advancement of ICBM, also those regarding reconnaissance satellite and those regarding SSBNs [Ship, Submersible, Ballistic, Nuclear] as well,” South Korean defence minister Kim Yong Hyun said at the Pentagon on 30 October.

Russian technical assistance could be useful for various missile capabilities North Korea is still working to develop, including launch reliability, carrying realistic payloads, and accurately hitting targets, Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul told The Independent.

“Ukrainian lives, territory, and bargaining positions are at significant risk because North Korea is providing a bridging supply of ammunition to Putin’s forces while Russia ramps up military industrial production with dual-use imports from China,” he said.

Edward Howell, Chatham House’s Korea analyst, agreed, saying “what Kim Jong Un wants the most is advanced missile technology” in a quick quid pro quo for the troop deployment.

“We know North Korea wants to improve its satellite technology capability, conventional weapons capability and missile delivery systems,” he said at a webinar, adding North Korea could also get food assistance and financial support.

The two countries have a long history of military cooperation which goes back to the Soviet Era when the bloc supported North Korea’s foundation as a communist state in 1948.

The Soviet Union helped the newly founded Pyongyang regime in the 1960s in building its nuclear research facility at Yongbyon, which has played a key role in its six nuclear tests since 2006.

The exchange would mirror Russia’s existing partnership with Iran, in which Moscow has been providing Tehran with nuclear technology in exchange for weapons and military support for the war in Ukraine, according to a statement from the White House in September.

“We should not forget that supporting Russia in the war has been an opportunity for North Korea to revitalise its defence industry,” said Ms Lee.

She said more adverse implications of Russia’s advanced military technology transfer to North Korea would include Pyongyang further advancing North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD) capabilities.

“Fighting side-by-side with a major power like Russia gives North Korea international ‘prestige’, perhaps even something like legitimacy to call itself an equal partner in a joint effort with Russia and Russia’s close friends to create an alternative global order,” she said.

“This ‘diplomatic space’ in turn gives North Korea more flexibility and options in dealing with the US. Namely, it will have implications for any future nuclear negotiations.”

More than 600,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or injured in the Ukraine war, Nato secretary general Mark Rutte said. And the transnational induction of the North Korean soldiers is set to relieve the pressure on Moscow to draft more of its young generation of citizens.

Mr Kim is ready to sacrifice some of his own soldiers in the Russian battle as the vast frontlines of Ukraine could become a learning ground for modern warfare and, according to Ms Lee, Mr Putin having Mr Kim’s back could encourage his “military adventurism”.

This is one of the reasons why South Korea has taken the lead in raising the urgency of the issue and even considering helping Ukraine with intelligence and military aid.

“Kim Jong Un is taking a big gamble,” says Ahn Chan Il, a former North Korean army first lieutenant. “If there are no large casualty numbers, he will get what he wants to some extent. But things will change if many of his soldiers die in battle.”

World reacts as Donald Trump wins US presidential election

World leaders have rushed to congratulate Donald Trump on his victory in the United States presidential election, securing a second White House term which could have seismic implications across the globe.

Jubilation had been building through the night in the Republican former president’s camp, with key allies flying to his base in Florida as the first two swing states of Georgia and North Carolina were called for Mr Trump.

But it was the projection of a Trump victory in the crucial swing state of Pennsylvannia – worth a whopping 19 electoral college votes – which saw Democrat Kamala Harris’s route to the White House close, with Mr Trump delcared the ovaerall winner shortly after 5.00am in Washington, DC, on Wednesday.

As Mr Trump appeared on stage to triumphantly address his supporters in Florida, the more vocal of his backers worldwide began to offer their congratulations.

In one of the most widely anticipated reactions, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Mr Trump, describing the former president’s return to power as “impressive”.

He said: “ I recall our great meeting with President Trump back in September, when we discussed in detail the Ukraine-U.S. strategic partnership, the Victory Plan, and ways to put an end to Russian aggression against Ukraine.”

Striking an optimistic tone, president Zelenskyy said he hoped Mr Trump’s “peace through strength” approach could bring peace in his country closer. “We look forward to an era of a strong United States of America under President Trump’s decisive leadership. We rely on continued strong bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States,” Mr Zelenskyy said.

In Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said: “Let’s not forget that we are talking about the unfriendly country that is both directly and indirectly involved in a war against our state.”

And no congratulations for Mr Trump were forthcoming from Moscow, where President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman declared that Russia-US relations were at the “lowest point in history.”

Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte said the world faces “a growing number of challenges globally, from a more aggressive Russia, to terrorism, to strategic competition with China”. And he warned of “the increasing alignment of China, Russia, North Korea and Iran”.

Mr Rutte added: “Working together through Nato helps to deter aggression, protect our collective security, and support our economies.”

Mr Trump was a strong critic of the Atlantic military alliance during his first term, accusing its other members of failing to pull their weight. Mr Rutte praised Mr Trump for his work persuading member states to ramp up defence spending, saying Nato was now “stronger, larger, and more united.”

And European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: “I warmly congratulate Donald J Trump. The EU and the US are more than just allies. We are bound by a true partnership between our people, uniting 800 million citizens. Let us work together on a transatlantic partnership that continues to deliver for our citizens.”

Sir Keir Starmer said: “Congratulations President-elect Trump on your historic election victory. I look forward to working with you in the years ahead.”

The UK prime minister said: “As the closest of allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise.

“From growth and security to innovation and tech, I know that the UK-US special relationship will continue to prosper on both sides of the Atlantic for years to come.”

Also in the UK, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: “He’s done it again. The most incredible political comeback of our lifetime.”

And Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch congratulated Donald Trump on his “historic election victory”.

“The world faces many serious challenges and I look forward to our two countries working together to confront them,” she said.

French President Emmanuel Macron congratulated Mr Trump on X. “Congratulations, President Donald Trump,” Macron wrote. German chancellor Olaf Scholz said: “I congratulate Donald Trump on his election as US President. For a long time, Germany and the US have been working together successfully promoting prosperity and freedom on both sides of the Atlantic. We will continue to do so for the wellbeing of our citizens. And Italian premier Giorgia Meloni added: “Italy and the United States are sister nations, linked by an unshakeable alliance, common values and a historic friendship. It is a strategic bond, which I am sure we will now strengthen even more.”

Meanwhile hardline ministers in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government celebrated on Wednesday.

“Yesssss, God bless Trump,” National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said on X. Bezalel Smitrich said: “God bless Israel, God bless America.” Another member of the government, Culture Minister Miki Zohar, said: “We are looking forward to the next four years.”

Mr Netanyahu himself sent a warm message to the president-elect and his wife. He wrote: “Dear Donald and Melania Trump, Congratulations on history’s greatest comeback! Your historic return to the White House offers a new beginning for America and a powerful recommitment to the great alliance between Israel and America.

“This is a huge victory! In true friendship, yours, Benjamin and Sara Netanyahu.”

Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz added: “Congratulations to President-Elect Donald Trump on his historic victory. Together, we’ll strengthen the US-Israel alliance, bring back the hostages, and stand firm to defeat the axis of evil led by Iran.”

The hard-right Hungarian premier Viktor Orban suggested Mr Trump was “on the way to a beautiful victory”, having openly endorsed the Republican in a departure from most of his European Union neighbours. And, as the result became clearer, Mr Orban added: “The biggest comeback in US political history! Congratulations to President Donald Trump on his enormous win. A much needed victory for the world.”

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko also called Mr Trump the winner in the U.S. presidential election, Russian state-run agency RIA said on Wednesday.

Irish premier Simon Harris and deputy premier and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin have pledged to work to maintain and strengthen the historic links between Ireland and the US.

In a statement the Taoiseach said: “I congratulate President-elect Donald Trump on his victory in the US presidential election.

“Ireland and the United States have deep and historical bonds of people, and we will work to make these even stronger in the years ahead.

“The world faces many challenges and needs leadership to meet them.

“With the US and Ireland’s shared commitment to democracy and international law, we can, and will, tackle these challenges.”

The Tanaiste said regular high-level political engagement with the new US administration and on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill will be a high priority for the Irish Government

“We look forward to working with him and his new administration in a constructive manner, as we did during his previous administration,” he said.

“This year marks 100 years of diplomatic relations between Ireland and the United States.

“Ireland’s relationship with the United States draws its strength from our deep, historical people-to-people connections, the support of the US to peace on this Island, as well as our significant, and mutually beneficial, economic relationship.

“As we prepare to engage with a new US administration, we do so building on the strong legacy of the last 100 years.

“The high level of political bipartisan interest in Irish issues among US politicians and officials is, and will continue to be, invaluable.”

Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders also joined Mr Orban with an enthusiastic display of support for Mr Trump, writing on X/Twitter in capital letters: “Congratulations President Trump! Congratulations America! Never stop, always keep fighting and win elections!”

Nayib Bukele, president of El Salvador was another to offer an early congratulations to Mr Trump, adding: “May God bless and guide you.”

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi said: “Heartiest congratulations my friend Donald Trump on your historic election victory. … Together, let’s work for the betterment of our people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity.”

Justin Trudeau has also congratulated MrTrump on his victory and promised to work with the Republican.

Canadian PM Mr Trudeau said: “Congratulations to Donald Trump on being elected President of the United States.

“The friendship between Canada and the U.S. is the envy of the world.

“I know President Trump and I will work together to create more opportunity, prosperity, and security for both of our nations.”

And the former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison shared a photograph of the pair together, adding: “Congratulations President Trump.” And ex-Slovenian prime minister Janez Janša sent his congratulations to the Republican Party.

There was also a notable reaction from the global financial markets, as the US dollar surged 1.7 per cent and the yield on the 10-year US Treasury note rose to a four-month high of 4.47 per cent.

With cryptocurrency-backing X owner Elon Musk closely linked to the Trump campaign and vying for control of a possible new crypto-inspired US government department, Bitcoin also hit a record high of $75,060.